Beyond the Flag
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Formula 1: The one crazy scenario that could send Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari

By Asher Fair

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 24: Top three qualifiers Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP (centre) Kimi Raikkonen of Finland and Ferrari (right) and Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari (left) pose for a photo in parc ferme after qualifying for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 24, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images)
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 24: Top three qualifiers Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP (centre) Kimi Raikkonen of Finland and Ferrari (right) and Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari (left) pose for a photo in parc ferme after qualifying for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 24, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images) /
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MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 25: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia driving the (3) Aston Martin Red Bull Racing RB14 TAG Heuer (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 25: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia driving the (3) Aston Martin Red Bull Racing RB14 TAG Heuer (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /

The crazy but possible scenario (continued)

To continue from the previous slide, Daniel Ricciardo can convince Mercedes that he is worth the gamble of Mercedes releasing Lewis Hamilton to sign him by having another great 2018 season driving for Aston Martin Red Bull Racing like he has in recent years.

Esteban Ocon can do that by putting together a 2018 Formula 1 season much like the one he put together last season driving for Sahara Force India, and George Russell, who test drove for both Mercedes and Force India in Formula 1 last season, can do that by putting together a strong rookie Formula 2 season driving for ART Grand Prix this year.

Many people believe that Valtteri Bottas will be replaced by Ricciardo or a young Mercedes driver such as Ocon or Russell in the 2019 season, so if Bottas performs at a higher level than Lewis Hamilton does in the 2018 season and one of Ricciardo, Ocon or Russell convinces Mercedes that they are worth the gamble of releasing Hamilton to sign them, things could get interesting as far as who Mercedes’ two drivers in the 2019 season will be.

Keep in mind the fact that Hamilton is several years older than all of these other drivers and there is a youth movement taking place in Formula 1 as we speak.

Of course, there is a chance that two of Ricciardo, Ocon and Russell could replace both Hamilton and Bottas in the 2019 season, but the likelihood of Mercedes having a completely new lineup next year is extremely small. If Hamilton is the team’s top driver once again in the 2018 season, there is no chance that he won’t be given the opportunity to sign another contract extension.

At that point, he would either re-sign or retire. Ferrari would not be an option.

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